Mindfulness: Applications to Military Families

The literature on mindfulness interventions has greatly expanded in recent decades, but there remains a limited amount of research on how mindfulness interventions can be applied to military families and their well-being. This report describes the current research on mindfulness interventions and how these interventions could be used by helping professionals who work with and on behalf of military families. The first part of the report is a summary of an extensive review of theoretical and empirical research on mindfulness, including definitions, theory, and outcome data on mindfulness interventions with parents, children, and youth. The second part of the report focuses on important aspects of mindfulness interventions that helping professionals could consider when designing and implementing programs for military families. The report concludes with recommendations for professionals who work with and on behalf of military families to consider as they integrate mindfulness interventions into programs, policies, and future research that benefit military families.